Notch bolt latch



March 27, 192& 1,663,572

T. F. STUART ET AL NOTCH BOLT LATCH Filed Nov, 12. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Q g '22 it 2.2 18 7V .4 0

1 16) Z YiO/QJ March 27, 192& 1,663,572

T. F. STUART ET AL uowcn sour LATCH Filed Nov 12. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 21/ 19/87 Q/.7f6or-e.

Patented Mar. 27, 1928.

mom E.- srmar ANDHE BY A. on. cams. m amscanmon a NQTQH. 3. 5 LATQE:

43.9131ication filed November 12 1925. Serial No. 68,564.

Our invention relates generally to door latches and more particularly tothat type of; latch known as a notchbolt latch in that it includes adead or looking bolt and the en-. tire latch assembly occupies a notchthat is cut in the door instead of a mortise.

The. principal objects ofour invention are to generally improve upon andsimplify the construction of the existing forms of generally used doorlatches and particularly those used upon interior doors;to provide alatch wherein the latching bolt and dead or locking bolts'are both undercontrol; of the door knob, therebyd'oing away with thenecessity of a.key or turn button for actuating the dead or looking bolt; to; provide alatch wherein the latching bolt is reversible so that its bevelled facemaybe turned toward either side of the door thus making the one latchapplicable for all doors regardless of the manner in which they arehinged orthe direction in which they swing; to provide a latch havingadjustable front or face plates.

thereby enabling one size of latch to be applied to. doors ofdifferentthicknesses; further, to provide a safety trip or latchingarrangement which when the door is open prevents the dead or lookingbolt frombei-ng projected beyond the edge of the door, in which eventthe door casing or jainb would bemarred when an attempt is. made toclose the door; and "further, to provide a latch that will permit ofitsbeing assembled as a complete unit and consequently enabling theknobs to act more freely than in latches that are installed in mortisesin the edge of; the door and which must be centeredfrom the sides forthe. accommodation of the notches. With the foregoing and other objectsin view, ourinvention consistsin certain novel features of constructionand arrangement of parts that will hereinafter be more fully describedand claimedand illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1is an elevational View of the edge of a door and showing a latch of ourimproved construction applied thereto. I Fig. 2 isLa vertical sectiontaken approximately on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an elevational :viewo f the latch with the side plate thatserves as a cover for the latch housing removed.

Fig. 4: is-a vertical cross section taken on the line.4t of Fig. 3.

s Fig. 5is an enlarged detail section taken approximately on the line 55 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a verticalsection taken approximately on the line 6 -65 ofFig. 4. i

Fig. 7 is a'perspective view of a member that is carried by one of theknob spindles andwh fieh is effective actuating'the 1atchingbolt and thelockingbolt. b 1Ft ig. 8 18- a perspective view of the locking 0 I Fig.9 is a perspective view of a dog or detent that is associated with thelocking bolt and whichis actuatedto permit said bolt to be shiftedintoand; out ot l'ocking position; i

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of 'the memgefith at is utilized foractuating the 1 latching o n Fig.- 11 isperspective- VlQW of thelatchingbolt andparts associated therewith.

Fig. '12 is; a horizontalsectioir taken approximately on the line 12-12ofiF-igl 3. r Fig.- 13 is a. horizontal section taken on the line 1313of 3. The housing of our improved latch is a substantially rectangularbox-like structure and comprisesa sideplate 10, a rear end plate 1 1, a.frontor'facepl'ate12, a top plate 13, and a bottom platel l, all ofwhich plates are areferably formed integral in orderto provide a strongand substantial structure, and secured to the edges of end plate 11 andtop and bottom plates 13- and 14 by' means of screws 16 is a readilydetachable side plate 17. i

This housing is adapted to occupy a substantiallyrectangularnotch N thatis cut in the edge portion of a doorD-and the edge faceof'the doorimmediately above and below notch N' is provided with shallowrecesses Rfor the reception oi the end plate 12 and the extensionface platemembers 18 that are adjustably arranged on the upper and lower edgesofsaid face plate. 7

Thesefaoe plate members 18*are slightly narrowerin width than thehousing of the lock and the ends that are connected to the upper andlower edgesofplate N: are provided with dove-tailed"ribs 19 that occupycorresponding slots20 that are formed in the upper and lower edges ofplate 12. As a result ofthisarrangemenuthe extension or auxiliary faceplate members. 18 may be adjusted on theupper'and loweredges of plate'12 so as to beproperly centered on doors of different thicknesses. IAuxiliary plates-18 are'provided with apertures; 21 forthe-receptionofscrews that secure the latch to the door.

Associated with the latch housing and arranged against the outer facesof plates 10 and 17 are face or finish plates such as 22, the edges ofwhich extend beyond the corresponding edges of the housing and provide afinish between said latch housing and the door to which it is applied.One of these face plates is mounted for longitudinal adjustment upon thehousing by means of inwardly presented lips 23 that overlie flanges 24formed on the corresponding edges of the housing and the other face orfinish plate is secured to the housing by means of a screw 25 thatenters a threaded stud 26 and which latter is formed integral with andprojects inwardly from side plate 10.

The reversible latching bolt of our improved latch comprises a heador'short bolt body 27 having a bevelled face 28 and said body beingarranged to slide through a rectangular aperture 29 that is formed inend plate 12. Formed integral with and pro jecting inwardly from body 27is a stem 30 to the inner end of which is applied a head or disk 31.This stem is arranged to slide freely through a sleeve 32 and the latterbeing arranged to slide in spaced bearings 33 that are formed integralwith and project inwardly from side plate 10 of the housing.

The outer or forward end of sleeve 32 carries a disk or flange 34, andarranged on said sleeve between this flange and a washer 35 that bearsagainst the inner one of the bearings 33 is an expansion coil spring 36.

Arranged on the projecting rear portion of stem 31 between the head 31and the inner end of sleeve 32 is a compressionspring 37.

Depending from the inner end of sleeve 32 is a short arm 38 to the lowerend of which is connected the inner end of a horizontally disposed arm39, to the opposite end of which latter is connected a block and thelatter being provided on its front face with a lug 41. Arm 39 and block40 are arranged for sliding movement on the bottom plate 14 of thehousing.

Associated with the latch are two knobs K and K which knobs are mountedin the customary manner upon spindles S which latter pass throughsuitably formed apertures in theface or finishing plates 22 and theplates 10 and 17.

As will be hereinafter more fully described, knob K is capable ofmanipulating the latching bolt 27 and also the looking or dead bolt,whereas knob K controls or is arranged to operate only the latching bolt27. Therefore in applying the latch to the door of a particular roomscreen porch, or private ofiice, the latch is applied so that the knob Kis on the inside ofthe door so that the looking or dead bolt may beshifted into locking position by a person within the room having a doorto which the lock is applied.

The inner end of spindle S upon which knob K is mounted is madenon-circular in cross section and it is mounted in a short sleeve 42 theouter end thereof having bearing in plate 17 and the inner end beingmounted to rotate freely in the inner end of a short sleeve 43 that iscarried by the inner endof a spindle S that carries the knob K Formedintegral with and projecting radially outward from sleeve 42'is a plate44 having at its outer end shoulders 45 and 46 and projectingrearwardly, from the outer portion of this plate 44 is a finger 47 thatterminates adjacent to plate 10.

Pivotally mounted on a pin or stud 48 that is arranged in the corner ofvthe cha1n ber within the latch housing that is formed between plates 11and 13 is a bell crank member 49 and bearing against the underside ofthe horizontal arm 50 thereof is the free end of a flat spring 51, theouter end of whichis secured to :1 lug or bracket 52 that depends fromtop plate 13. The depending arm of bell crank me1nber 49 is provided onits inner face just below arm 50 with a curved bearing surface 53 thatis adapted to be engaged by the upper edge of finger 47 when sleeve 42is rotated toward the right hand and the lower end of the depending armof said bell cranlr is provided with a head 54 that bears against lug 41on block 40.

Thus knob K through its spindle and sleeve 42 when rotated toward theright hand swings bell crank member 49 on its fulcrum and the bearing oflug 54 against lug 41 moves the latching bolts 27 and parts associatedtherewith inwardly so as to retract said latching bolt and permit thedoor to which the latch is applied to be opened.

I In order that knob K which is on the outside of the door may retractthe latching bolt, sleeve 43 that is carried by the inner portion ofstem S that carries knob K is provided with a depending linger 55, thelower end of which occupies a position against the inner face of block40. Connected to the lower end of this depending finger is one end of aretractile spring 56, the opposite end of which is connected to a pin57- that projects inwardly from plate 10. Finger is limited in itsswinging movement away from block'4O by a stud 58 that projects inwardlyfrom plate 10.

As a result of the structure just described when knob K is rotatedtoward the right hand finger 55bears against block 40 to move the sameand associated parts including the latching bolt inwardly therebyretracting said latching bolt and permitting the door to which the latchis applied to be opened.

The dead or locking belt of our improved latch and which is controlledonly by knob K comprises a short bolt body 59 that is adapted to beprojected through an opening 60 in plate 12 just above the latching boltopening 29 and formed integral with or fixed to said bolt body andprojecting inwardly within the latch housing just below top plate 13 isa bar 61 provided in its lower portion with a longitudinally disposedslot 62 through which projects a horizontally disposed lug 63. and the.latter being arranged on the lowor end of a short arm 64 that dependsfrom topv plate 13.

Formed in the underside of the inner portion of bar 61 is a notch 65 andformed integral with and projecting forwardly from the lower portion ofbar 61 below and to the sides of said notch 65 are lugs 66, the underfaces of whichare curved or inclined as des ignated by 67.

Associated with bar 61 that carries locking bolt 59 is a latching member68 having on one end a horizontally disposed pin 69 that isjournaledinan aperture 70 formed in bar 61. Carried by the end .of member 68 fromwhich pin 69 projects is a spring 71, the free end of which bearsagainst the underside of :1. lug 7 2 that projects forwardly from bar61. This spring 71 exerts pressure to force the free end of member 68downwardly onto the lugs 66. That portion of member 68 that overlieslugs 66 is provided on its front edge with a depending flange 7 8, thelower curved edge. of which extends lengthwise across the space betweenthe curved bearing surfaces 67.

Formed in the lower edge of the central portion of member 68 are notches74 and 7 5 that are adapted to receive lug 63 when the locking bolt isin its projected and retracted positions.

Depending flange 7 3 is in positionso that its lower curvededgeisadapted to be engaged by shoulder 45 on plate 44 carried by sleeve 42and the curved bearing faces 67 on lugs 66 are arranged so as to beengaged by bearing shoulder 46 when sleeve 42 is rotated.

The automatically acting means for preventing the locking bolt frombeing projected when the door is open includes a small bolt' like member76 having on its outer portion oppositely disposed bevelled faces77 andwhich member is arranged to move freely through a rectangular opening 76that is formed. in plate 12 below the latch bolt opening 29.

that is arranged for sliding movement just beneath top plate 13. Thislatching bar is supported by a pin 86 and its free endiis adapted to.occupy a position, when the door to which the latch is applied is openand member 7 6 is projected, beneath a hook 87 that is formed on theupper end of a bell crankmember 88 and which latter is fulcrumed at 89to plate 10. p

The lower portion of this bell crank member is formed: into a curved arm90, the free end of which is adapted to be engaged by the rear end offinger 47 that projects rearwardly from plate 44 on sleeve 42.

The rearward movement of hell crank 88 is limited by a pin or stud 9i.

The operation of our improved latch is as follows:

lVl1en' the door to which our improved latch is applied is open spring81 that is associated with stem 78 forces member 76 outwardly to itslimit of movement from the latch housing, as illustrated in Figs. 3 and1-8, and when the member 76 is thus positioned, lever 83 holds latchmember 85 at its limit of movement toward the right hand and with thefree end of. said member 85 engaged beneath hook 87 of hell crank member88.

.Vith the parts so positioned it is impossible for bell crank member88-to swing upon its fulcrum and consequently the engagement of arm 90'against the finger 47 carried by sleeve 42 prevents thev latter frombeing rotated toward the left hand to shift the locking bolt outwardlyfrom the latch housing. Consequently as long as the door to which thelatch is applied is open, it is impossible to project locking bolt 59and parts associated therewith, andthus the door can always be readilyclosed and which result would not be possible if the locking bolt wereaccidently projected while the door is open.

When the door is closed the bevelled outer end of member 76 strikesagainst a blank the right hand and, as a result, bearing shoulder 46 onplate 44 that is carried by sleeve 42 will engage curved bearing case 53on dependingarm 49., thereby swinging said arm upon its fulcrum or'pivot and causing head 54 to press against lug 41 and move block 40 andparts associated therewith including latch bolt 27 inwardly or towardthe. right hand. Thus the pro Ijecting portion ofthe latch bolt iswithdrawn from its recess or aperture in the striking plate on the doorjamb and the. door may be. readily opened. Asisoon as knob, K

is disengaged the power stored in compression spring 36 and spring 51will act to return the parts to their normal positions and with thelatching bolt projecting from the locking housing.

Inasmuch as sleeve 41 rotates independently of sleeve 48, the actuationof knob K will in no wise aiiect knob K and parts associated therewith,and vice versa.

To retract latching bolt 27 and open the door from the outside, knob Kis manually engaged and rotated a short distance toward the right handand as sleeve 13 that is carried by the spindle of said knob K isrotated, depending arm 51 will be swung toward the right hand, therebyengaging and bearing against block so as to move the same and partsassociated therewith,'and as a result, latching bolt 27 will beretracted or drawn into the latch housing so that the door may beopened.

As knob K is released, retractile spring 56 will return arm 55 toits'normal position and the latching bolt and associated parts arereturned to their normal positions under the influence of spring 36.

As previously stated, the latch is applied to the door so that the knobK is on the inside of the room, for instance, a screened porch, a bathroom, or a private otiice, and when a person within the room desires topositively lock the door against being opened from the exterior, knob Kis engaged and rotated a short distance toward the left hand. Inasmuchas hook 87 is free, member 88 will be swung upon its pivot 89 by thepressure of linger 41-7 against arm 90 and bearing shoulder on plate 4 1will engage the curved lower edge of flange 73 and thereby swing thefree end of member 68 upwardly so that lug 63 is free from the notch 75in which it has been engaged. It will be understood that lug 63'occupies notch 75 while the locking bolt is in retracted position andthus said locking bolt is positively held in such locking position untilmember 68 is moved upward to free lug 63.

Following the upward swinging movement of member 68 bearing shoulder 46engages the left hand one of the bearing faces 67 and as the turningmovement of the knob continues the locking bolt and member 68 carriedthereby will be upwardly moved toward the left hand so as to projectlocking bolt 59 and the same will enter the aperture .or recess inthe'striking plate on the door jamb.

At the end of this bolt projecting operation, shoulder will pass beyondthe lowermost portion of flange 73, thereby permitting the free end ofmember 68 to move downward under the influence of spring 71 so that lug63 will occupy notch 74 with the result that the locking bolt and boltlatching member 68 will be positively locked when moved outward intolocking position. \Vith the door thus locked it will be impossible tounlock the same from the outside by reason of the fact that there is nomechanism associated with the outside knob and its sleeve 43 to actuateor retract the locking bolt.

To retract the locking bolt it is only necessary to reversely rotateknob K or rotate the same toward the right hand and as a result, latchmember 68 will be first lifted and then bearing shoulder 46 will engageagainst the curved bearing surface on the right hand lug 66 andcontinued movement will draw the locking bolt and parts carried therebytoward the right hand so as to draw the projecting portion of said boltinto the lock housing.

The adjustment of the latch housing upon the face plate 22 that isapplied to the outer face of the door enables said latch housing to bereadily shifted a short distance longitudinally in either direction andthereby centered or positioned so as to receive the stems S that carrythe knobs K and K when the latch is applied. to the door, and by makingthe auxiliary plates 18 adjustable upon plate 12, said auxiliary platesmay be readily centered upon the door to which the latch is applied.

A. particularly valuable and advantageous feature of our improved latchis the reversible latching bolt 27, for by the provision of such a boltthe latch may be applied to doors that swing in either direction. I

To reverse the latching bolt it is only necessary to engage theprojecting portion of said bolt and pull the same outwardly against theresistance of spring 37 and then turn the bolt half way round and permitthe same to re-enter the aperture 29. This action reverses the positionof the bevelled face 28 on said latching bolt and consequently enablesthe latch to be universally used on right hand or left hand hung doorsor doors that swing in different directions.

Thus it will be seen that we have provided a notch bolt latch that isrelatively simple in construction, capable of being readily installedand which is very effective in performing its intended functions.

It will be understood that minor changes in the size, form andconstruction of the various parts of our improved latch may be made andsubstituted for those herein shown and described without departing fromthe spirit of our invention, the scope of which is set forth in theappended claims.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a loclc ing bolt arranged for operation within said housing, apair of independently operable knobs associated with said latch, meansassociated with each knob for retracting said latching bolt and meansassociated with one knob for projecting and retracting the locking.bolt.

2. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a looking bolt arranged for operation within said housing, apair of independently operable knobs associated with said latch, meansassociated with each knob for retracting said latching bolt, meansassociated with one knob for projecting and retracting the locking boltand automatically acting means for rendering the locking boltactuatingmeans inoperative while the door to which the latch is applied is open.

3. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a locking bolt arranged for operationwithin said housing, apair of. independently operable knobs carrying spindles arranged foropera tion within the housing, means carried by one spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried by the other spindle forretracting the latching bolt and means carried by one of said spindlesfor projecting and retracting said locking bolt.

4. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a locking bolt arranged for operation within said housing, apair of independently operable knobs carrying spindles arranged foropera tion Within the housing, means carried by one spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried by the other spindle for'retracting the latching bolt, means carried by one of said spindles forprojecting and retracting said locking bolt and means associated withsaid locking bolt for latching it in both retracted and projectedpositions.

5. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a looking bolt arranged for operation within said housing, apair of independently operable knobs carrying spindles arranged foroperation within the housing, means carried by one spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried by the other spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried byone of said spindles forprojecting and retracting said locking bolt and means movable intoposition when the door with which the latch is associated is open forrendering the locking bolt actuating means inoperative.

6. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a locking bolt arranged for operation within said housing, apair of independently operable knobs carrying spindles arranged foroperation within the housing, means carried by one spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried by the other spindle forretracting the latching bolt, means carried by one of said spindles forprojecting and retracting said locking bolt, means associated with saidlocking bolt for latching it in both retracted and projected positionsand means movable into position when the door with which the latch isassociated is open for rendering the. locking bolt actuating meansinoperative.

' 7. In a door latch, a housing, a latching bolt arranged for operationtherein, a locking bolt arranged for operation within said housing,aknob carrying spindle arranged for operation within the latch, meanscarried by said spindle and associated therewith for retracting saidlatching bolt and a portion of which last mentioned means is adapted toproject and retract said locking bolt.

8. In a door latch, a housing, a locking bolt arranged for operationtherein, a knob carrying spindle arranged for operation in said housing,means carried by said spindle for projecting and retracting said lockingbolt and automatically acting means operable when the door to which thelatch is applied is open for rendering the spindle carried locking boltactuating means inoperative.

9. In a door latch, a housing, a locking bolt arranged for operationtherein, a knob carrying spindle arranged for operation in said housing,means carried by said spindle for projecting and retracting said lockingbolt, automatically acting means operable when the door to which thelatch is applied is open for rendering the spindle carried locking boltactuating means inoperative and means for positively locking the lockingbolt in both projected and retracted positions.

10. In a door latch, a housing for the locking mechanism, which housingincludes an end plate and auxiliary end plates adjustably arranged onthe upper and lower edges of said end plate.

11. In a door latch, a housing for the loci ing mechanism and auxiliaryend plates mounted .for independent transverse adjustment at one end ofsaid housing.

In testimony whereof we afiix our signatures.

